Zero hours contracts are sometimes used by employers that require flexibility in their workforce, for example where the need for workers is unpredictable. Under a zero hours contract, the employer is not obliged to offer the worker a set number of hours. Their use has attracted controversy and in 2013 the government outlined plans to restrict the use of “exclusivity clauses” whereby workers are stopped from working for other employers.
At the Acas 2025 conference in Westminster, Soames accused the government of failing to listen to businesses's concerns about the proposals.